Storm knocks out power to much of the Big Island

While the former hurricane Barbara was too weak to cause significant damage to the Big Island, it still succeeded in knocking out power to much of the island Monday.

As rain lashed the windward side of the island Monday morning, power outages struck residences and businesses across the island from Hilo to Kona and several communities in between. Hawaii Electric Light spokeswoman Kristen Okinaka said the power outage affected about 51,000 customers (over 60 percent of HELCO ratepayers).

Power was restored to most customers within 30 minutes of the outage, with the last affected customers restored by early afternoon.